Traveling When You're Not A Traveler

Traveling can feel overwhelming if you don’t consider yourself a traveler. The thought of packing, navigating airports, or stepping into unfamiliar places might trigger anxiety rather than excitement. Even figuring out where to go can set some of us inter overwhelm. Yet, you have this urge to explore. Exploring the world doesn’t have to be stressful or complicated, it can be a rewarding experience that opens your eyes to new cultures, ideas, and perspectives. Rather than offer a guide, I prefer we have a more 'on the level' conversation, you know, as if we were sitting on the couch wearing fuzzy slippers with a glass of wine.

El Dorado Resort Cancun, MX

Start Small and Choose Comfort

If you’re not used to traveling, start with all three main trip details being completely manageable. Choose destinations that feel manageable, choose a long weekend over a week or two week stretch. Choose a nice hotel, but not the fanciest, you don't want your budget to explode at the thought of a $40 dinner. Choose places where you speak the language or where the culture is familiar. This reduces stress and helps you focus on enjoying the experience rather than solving problems.

For example, visiting a neighboring state or a well-known city that can offer a taste of travel without overwhelming logistics. There are so many, to choose from, and a lot of them would be the perfect option for a long weekend that doesn't throw a grenade at your bank account. New Orleans. Boston. Chicago. Nashville. Savannah. Washington DC. San Francisco. Las Vegas. Santa Fe. Sacramento. Scottsdale. Cleveland. San Antonio. Austin. This list could go on and on, but you get my point.

Plan but Leave Room for Flexibility

Having a rough plan helps reduce anxiety. Know where you will stay, how you will get there, and a few things you want to see or do. Maybe plan one thing, but no more than two each day, pay attention to what things you might have to book ahead of time vs the things you would be able to purchase tickets for at the door. For example, if in Vegas, and you want to go see a show, you will probably need to book seats for that, but things like the Mob Museum or Neon Museum you can just buy at the door, so then you won't need to stress if you'd prefer to enjoy more time in the pool. Leave time for spontaneous discoveries or rest.

This approach balances structure with freedom, making travel feel less like a chore and more like an adventure.

The Art of Packing Light and Smart

Packing can be a major source of stress for non-travelers. Maybe it's the thought that carrying too much or forgetting essentials will ruin a trip. Let me tell you, you will survive both sides of that. If you forget something, so what, it will be okay- you will survive. But in the interest of making your life easy focus on packing the things that make you most comfortable. For each person that's something different. Now I say that, but you also don't want to be the person who travels with a whole steamer trunk. Personally, I always stick to white, black, denim and khaki PLUS one central color. Usually it's a dark emerald green for me. The point here is to focus on color and individual pieces that come together to make outfits.

You'll probably here lots of travelers talk about a travel capsule wardrobe. This is the basic way it works:

5 tops

4 bottoms

3 dresses (or dressier outfits if you don't like dresses)

2 shoes

1 sandals

I don't count handbags here or accessories, this is where that whole packing the things that make you most comfortable comes into play, but definitely be smart. If you have a particular sun hat you love, then bring it. If you bounce between three swimsuits on your best day then bring all three, swim suits don't take up much room and if they make you comfortable and confident then bring them.

Spellbound Getaways Summer Travel Capsule Wardrobe

Learn Where Three Things are Ahead of Time

Technology can simplify many aspects of travel, but something it can't do is automatically make you feel confident and comfortable. Something I tell everyone to do ahead of time, learn where three things are before you go. Focus on your creature comfort things. If that's Dunkin or Starbucks, learn where those are. If it's an Espresso Martini, find out who makes the best one (probably nearest to your hotel) and learn where it is. If something you truly love in life is a book store, figure out where there's a cute book store.

These tools help you feel more in control and reduce the fear of the unknown, your brain starts to accept that you get to have a few of your favorite things in this new place.

Connect with Locals and Fellow Travelers

Meeting people can transform your travel experience. I love connecting with locals and fellow travelers when I'm there, but beforehand I've learned to just take everything with a grain of salt. You always have to remember that someone else's ideal vacation isn't necessarily yours. Travel preferences have more to do with your adult day-to-day than you think. If you work from home, you will have different preferences than someone who works with lots of people face-to-face. If you believe in eating all organic and cook your dinners every day - you will have a much different view than those who like quick service or fast food most of the time.

And before you really dive hot and heavy into a new idea, or let your idea get slashed by another person remember that you may have a different outlook. So when it comes to travel, before you ask anyone or say too much, quietly think to yourself: does this sound like something I would like, or am I more excited because of how happy and joyful this person was to tell me about it? Before you cancel out something you really were excited about or eager to see because someone else didn't enjoy it, think to yourself, would I regret not doing this thing that I was so excited about? Is it possible that their experience was influenced by something that has possibly changed? Such as management, menu, crew, renovation, chef, etc. Hate to say it, but just about every piece of travel is a mixed bag. With cruises and resorts, crew changes occur almost every 3 to 6 months. This can include housekeeping, performers, wait staff, maintenance crew, etc. So don't take someone else's experience as gospel. Even if that someone else is AI. AI will often take one review and consensus. It's called AI bias. But that same review from one person could be a case that they didn't know what to expect. They needed a "me", someone who tells it like it is, works to put you in the right cabin to meet your needs, and someone that tells you the tips and tricks that are meaningful and meant to lower your stress.

Small Trips Can be More Meaningful Than the Big Ones

Sincerely, please hear me when I tell you that travel is a skill that develops over time. When you are just starting out your journey into traveling and you really haven't done a lot of leisure travel before there's this thing that happens called "The Perfect Vacation Paradox". It's where you plan a vacation so big and so expensive that you unintentionally place enormous pressure on it to be perfect. When every meal, ride, excursion, crew member, photo and towel animal had "better be worth it" to justify the cost. The vacation can start feeling like a performance instead of an experience.

Focus on Experiences, Not Perfection

Travel doesn’t have to be flawless to be enjoyable. Accept that things might not go exactly as planned. Delays or unexpected changes are part of the journey. Focus on celebrating small victories. Even taking photos of the mistakes so you remember later on they really weren't that big of a deal helps with future trips to have the mindset that helps you stay positive and open to adventure.

Prioritize Low Stress

Feeling safe is essential for enjoying travel, especially if you’re new to it. With that said, please remember you can get hit by a bus or a semi or pretty much anything short of a flying saucer in any city, including your home town. So. Here's the deal. There will always be places that are statistically safer than others. When traveling domestically, you won't need to be as on guard, but common sense travel should always apply. Please don't put on your most expensive jewelry, don't be taking out wads of cash in public, keep your purse on you (crossbody is best if you can).

Being prepared reduces anxiety and lets you focus on the fun parts of travel.

Hilarious enough, I'm also going to say the things your not supposed to say. The things no one else will probably ever tell you. If your travel partner causes you a lot of stress - FIGURE THAT OUT.

See my blog post on Identifying Your Travel Stress.

Use Travel as a Chance to Grow

Travel challenges your comfort zone and encourages personal growth. It teaches patience, adaptability, and curiosity. Travel changes your perspective on life and yourself.

This mindset turns travel into a meaningful journey beyond sightseeing.

Tulip Festival, Holland, MI